CHP cracks down on unsafe driving

The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is taking strides to address the greater Fallbrook area’s traffic concerns. Three officers in particular are working together to serve calls to problem areas, while supporting patrolling officers as they routinely scour the area for speeding vehicles and unsafe drivers.

Sergeant Scott Payson and officers Dan Hollywood and Jimmy Gaffney are part of the Community Oriented Policing (COPS) taskforce, which will serve the unincorporated parts of San Diego County, specifically Fallbrook and Rancho Santa Fe.

The new taskforce is the CHP’s way of addressing the increased influx of calls for service received from throughout the community.

“The Fallbrook area calls for service volume is two to three times greater than anywhere else,” said Payson. “We have no problem admitting that there was a delay in response time before.”

Payson, who oversees Pauma Valley and Fallbrook CHP patrols, stated that problem areas the CHP hopes to address are the ones around schools during the school year.

“We have a clear problem on Reche Road with speed,” said Gaffney. “The speed limit is 25 mph, but people obviously do not follow the limit, so we get a lot of calls to the area.”

As part of the COPS program, additional patrol units will help saturate problem areas that have high calls for service.

“For example, we will have three or four patrol vehicles surrounding the streets of the high school during high traffic times,” said Gaffney. “The last thing we want is a child hurt, so we will watch for unsafe drivers on Winterhaven, Stage Coach and other surrounding streets.”

The COPS program was made possible through a reallocation of funds by the CHP office, said Gaffney.

“Captain Deb Schroeder is big on unincorporated areas,” said Gaffney. “These areas were like an overlooked child, but she saw the progress made when extra units were placed in Pauma Valley, and extended the program.”

By having a higher amount of units patrolling the Pauma Valley area, Payson said the fatality numbers have dropped significantly.

“The number of fatal collisions went from 57 in 2009 to 26 in 2010,” said Payson. “Our collision and hit-and-run numbers also dropped significantly. Having additional CHP cars out and about has also had a great impact on the community. People driving tell their friends, and they are more careful.”

Payson warned that if residents call for service, they will get what they ask for.

“If we get a call for service in a certain area, 75 percent of the stops we make are usually residents of the area,” said Payson.

The officers will also be monitoring areas where drivers typically do not follow the road laws.

“Some residents don’t realize that what they’ve done in the past while driving is not ‘okay’ because everyone else is doing it,” said Gaffney.

To help cut down on time spent going to and from the Oceanside CHP office, the officers on patrol have access to desks at the Sheriff’s substations in Fallbrook and Bonsall to work on paperwork.

Having these stations available for paperwork also dramatically cut down on response time, said Payton. In the Pauma Valley area, the CHP has an unofficial station donated to them by the Pauma Valley water district.

“This cuts down the commute to responses to calls for service in this area and the Palomar Mountain area as well,” said Payson. “Before, we would have to be dispatched from the Oceanside office and fight the traffic on State Route 76, which could take hours.”

While another CHP station closer to Fallbrook and Bonsall has been discussed for several years, Payton stated that the state’s economic status has kept the department from expanding its offices.

In addition to patrolling the unincorporated areas, the officers involved in the COPS program will serve as additional support to emergency calls within the CHP’s jurisdiction.

Payson, who has been a Fallbrook resident for 16 years and a CHP officer for 12, believes that the program will allow officers and residents to have pride in their community.

“The COPS project will allow officers to take responsibility for an area and consider it their ‘back yard,’” said Payson. “When we are responsible for this beat, we have more pride and take more responsibility in the area.”

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